Madisons Grill & Bar punishing me over braids, worker alleges

A Montreal restaurant employee says a dispute with her boss over her hairstyle is a case of racial discrimination.

Lettia McNickle, 19, has worked as a hostess at Madisons New York Grill & Bar in downtown Montreal since October.

However, after coming in with braids on one side of her head a few weeks ago, she hasn’t received any shifts at all, she said.

McNickle said her manager told her in front of all her co-workers that her hairstyle was unacceptable.

"I obviously wanted to know what it was she didn’t like specifically about the hairstyle, so the [next] day I asked her, 'What is it that’s wrong with my hair?’ And she said, 'We don’t want that kind of look here at the restaurant,' " McNickle told CBC Daybreak host Mike Finnerty on Thursday.